Chongqing is a Chinese city and a municipality with province-level status. As such its citizens are proud and loyal to their home, and one finds evidence of that in aspects of its urban character. As a tourist destination, it’s often overlooked in favour of more high profile cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Kunming; however, the city has as much to offer as those destinations and more besides.

Cultural and sightseeing attractions are abundant both within the city limits and beyond in the destinations surrounding it. Chongqing’s lengthy history has blessed it with a plethora of important old buildings and religious structures, while its location close to both the Yangtze and Jialing rivers has provided it with some scenic nature spots and opportunities for outdoor activities.

The city boasts that it invented the hot pot, a unique method of dining in which the customer actually gets to cook what he or she eats. Whether this claim holds any truth is debatable but what is rarely disputed is that Chongqing is a destination with some great culinary traditions behind it and a place to enjoy some truly mouth-watering cuisine.

The city has an excellent selection of accommodation options with some big name hotel chains such as Hilton, Holiday Inn and Marriot among the mix. A variety of cheaper, independent establishments can also be found with generally something to suit all tastes and budgets.

Archaeologists have found evidence of the presence of late Stone Age man in the Chongqing area; however, the city’s real history can be traced back around 3,000 years. Early historic entries include those referencing it as the capital of the state of Ba from the early Shang Dynasty years (c. 16th century BC) through to the end of the Warring States Period (221 BC). Later, it became a prefecture entitled ‘Ba’ in the period from the Qin Dynasty through to the Eastern Han Dynasty.

The formal declaration that promoted Chongqing from prefecture to city came in 1929; a decade later it was declared a municipality by the Executive Yuan. When WWII arrived, Chongqing was made provisional capital by the Kuomintang government and became the centre for politics, economics, finance, commerce, transport, culture and diplomacy. In 1946 after the city of Nanjing became free of hostile occupation, Chongqing was demoted to a municipality again and Nanjing promoted back to capital status.

The People's Republic of China was founded in 1949 and Chongqing was chosen as the base of operations for both the South-western Military and Political Commission and the regional branch of the Communist Party of China (CPC). China retained Chongqing’s status as a municipality and it continued to be a centre for culture, politics and economics in the country’s southwest. In 1954, more changes were made, resulting in Chongqing being demoted back to city status, this time falling under the control of Sichuan Province.

Chongqing’s climate is humid subtropical in nature and influenced by the monsoon, like many South and South-East Asian destinations. There are two long distinct seasons and two shorter less distinct ones in between.

The winter season (December to February) sees mild weather with overcast conditions. Temperatures average around 10˚C and rainfall volumes are low, rarely exceeding 25mm. Fog is a dominant feature of the climate from late autumn through to early spring and on average the city receives around 48 days of fog per year.

April is a good month to visit the city as temperatures are still bearable and rainfall not especially heavy. If you wait until the following month or later still into the summer season, you really do need to be prepared for the heat and for the constant threat of precipitation.